Management

Alex DeBarr

President & CEO

Alex DeBarr

President & CEO

Alex DeBarr has been the president and CEO of Naylor Association Solutions since 2006. Since arriving at Naylor, Alex has led the evolution of Naylor’s product and service offerings, including the launch of a full digital product suite and the addition of a variety of event, SaaS, consulting and marketing services designed to serve the communication, engagement and non-dues revenue needs of business and professional associations. This expansion has included acquiring event management specialists Convention Management Group (CMG) in 2007, Global Exchange Events in 2012, Boxwood Technology, the leading career and job services provider for associations, in 2014, Timberlake Membership Software in January 2015 and W.J. Weiser and Associates, a leading association management company, in July 2015. Naylor now works with more than 1,800 associations throughout both countries. Naylor was acquired in December 2013 by RLJ Equity Partners, the Bethesda, MD-based private equity firm founded by Robert L. Johnson.

Prior to joining Naylor, Alex spent 21 years at Advanstar Communications, a leading global media company providing integrated marketing solutions for healthcare, pharmaceutical, life sciences, and other industries, where he oversaw a number of Advanstar’s integrated market groups and managed company-wide editorial programs and review processes. He began his career at Advanstar predecessor Harcourt Brace Jovanovich Publications in 1984 and held a number of editorial, sales and publishing management roles before being appointed an executive vice president in 1997. Alex is a 1984 graduate of Ohio University’s E.W. Scripps School of Journalism, currently sits on the board of directors of ABM (The Association of Business Information and Media Companies), and has four grown children.

John Schwallie

Chief Financial Officer

John Schwallie

Chief Financial Officer

John is a CPA who has specialized in building and restructuring businesses in the U.S. and overseas – particularly in fast-growing industries – for more than 20 years. John became chief financial officer of Czech Republic-based Nova TV, the first national private broadcast TV station in eastern Europe, in 1994, where he oversaw training and development of the station’s financial team and reporting systems, and acted as Nova’s primary financial liaison to parent company Central European Media Enterprises’ (CME) successful IPO. John subsequently was promoted to CFO, where he helped raise public equity and develop private investment for new stations in Slovakia, Slovenia, Poland, Ukraine and Romania. He later served as CFO and COO of Wild Brain, a San Francisco-based animation studio, before starting a consulting business to work as an interim executive for investors and their portfolio companies. John has a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Skidmore College and an MBA from Cornell University. John lives in Boston with his wife and three children. He works principally from Naylor’s Hunt Valley and Tysons Corner offices.

Dave Bornmann

Chief Marketing Officer

Dave Bornmann

Chief Marketing Officer

Part of the Naylor team since 2012, Dave is responsible for overall marketing strategy, branding, lead generation and solution marketing. As a veteran of five start-ups, Dave has a history of building strong teams, establishing solid business processes and preparing organizations for significant growth. He has held leadership roles at a number of companies including Sprint and Statoil Energy. He has a marketing MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and a BA in economics from Swarthmore College. Dave is a fitness enthusiast, recently completed his fourth triathlon and likes to spend time with his husband, daughter and dog at their getaway spot in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware.

Tom Aley

Group Vice President, Software Solutions

Tom Aley

Group Vice President, Software Solutions

Tom started at Boxwood in 2005 as a director and now serves as group vice president for software solutions. Tom oversees the client management team whose focus is to help associations build strong and sustainable career center businesses. He also developed Boxwood’s business intelligence and analytics programs. Prior to Boxwood, Tom served as vice president at QRS New Media, managing company financials and multi-million infrastructure projects for audio/video, television, radio and other broadcast media facilities. He is adept at understanding client needs and developing creative solutions. He has also worked for several mission-driven non-profits in campaign development and marketing. Tom earned a BS in economics from Towson University and enjoys cooking, travel and spending time with his family.

Wendy Weiser

Founder & President, WJ Weiser & Associates, Inc.

Wendy Weiser

Founder & President, WJ Weiser & Associates, Inc.

Wendy J. Weiser is the founder and president of WJ Weiser & Associates, Inc. Weiser was established in 1988 as a medical practice management firm that advanced into association management in 1990. In July 2015, Naylor Association Solutions acquired Weiser. In all, Weiser has managed associations with a reach of more than 25,000 members that represent $30 million in combined association revenue. Prior to founding her company, Wendy began her professional career with Baxter Healthcare Corporation, where she was responsible for designing, overseeing, and controlling the day-to-day business operations and practice management needs for more than 50 physical therapy centers located throughout the United States. Wendy completed her studies at Northeastern Illinois University with a major in psychology. In her spare time she enjoys travel, people she loves and poetry.

John Gallagher

Group Vice President, Naylor Event Solutions

John Gallagher

Group Vice President, Naylor Event Solutions

John oversees the Naylor Event Solutions team of trade show professionals which is responsible for producing over 15 association events per year. He has been involved extensively in exhibition and conference management in the U.S. and around the world. As former President & CEO of Messe Frankfurt North America and Senior Vice President of E.J. Krause & Associates, John has organized wholly owned events, joint ventures and association management events across multiple industries in every major venue in the US and internationally. He is a graduate of the University of Maryland School of Journalism. John lives in Maryland with his wife, two children and their yellow Labrador retriever, Maggie.

Laura Taylor

Vice President of Digital Operations and Development

Laura Taylor

Vice President of Digital Operations and Development

Laura began her career at Naylor in 2008 as a sales professional. In early 2011, Laura moved from sales to the operational side of the business, joining our online support team as a project specialist. Today, Laura serves as the vice president of digital operations and development, a role in which she manages the overall operations of our online product, customer and sales support for our associations’ online communications platforms. In addition, Laura researches emerging digital communication technology to ensure Naylor consistently offers the best member communication tools to its client family. Laura graduated from the University of Tennessee with a bachelor of arts in marketing. Outside of work, Laura enjoys playing tennis, traveling and spending time with family and friends.

Craig Judt

Vice President, Technology and Production

Craig Judt

Vice President, Technology and Production

Craig started with Naylor in 2000 as an information technology consultant. He specializes in IT management systems, workflow and systems design. Craig is one of the senior architects of Naylor’s internal management information system which integrates sales, production and finance. In January 2005, he joined the team as director of technology services and was promoted to vice president of technology services in 2011. In 2012, Naylor added the operational management of production to his responsibilities. Prior to working with Naylor, Craig was a consultant for JCL Associates, specializing in process control and automation systems. He has a Master of Science degree in robotics and computer integrated manufacturing and holds credentials as a Professional Engineer. Outside of work, Craig enjoys spending time with his wife and two sons, playing golf and working on house renovations.

Joe Rosensteel

Vice President, Digital Product Development

Joe Rosensteel

Vice President, Digital Product Development

Joe is a founding force of Boxwood’s vision, footprint and reputation in the association and career center arenas. Joe strategically manages mission critical personnel to drive Boxwood and Timberlake’s unrivaled technology. In 1999, as Boxwood’s lead software engineer, Joe headed the team that designed and built the core career center infrastructure, a platform which still exists as the underpinning of Boxwood’s array of products and services. Joe’s more recent role as vice president of digital product development is distinguished by significant contributions to the growth and operational success of the company. His ideas and execution have resulted in production efficiencies, increased revenues and maximized customer satisfaction. Joe attended Towson University and spends his free time with his wife and two boys. He enjoys coaching and watching them both play club soccer and lacrosse.

Vera Payne, PHR, SHRM-CP

Director of Human Resources & Employee Development

Vera Payne, PHR, SHRM-CP

Director of Human Resources & Employee Development

Vera Payne joined Naylor in 2013 as a manager of training & development. In this role she supported curriculum redesign and implementation, change management and organizational development. In 2018, Vera was promoted to director of human resources & employee development to help oversee HR services. Vera has a multi-disciplinary human resources background in the healthcare and technology industries with a focus on high-growth, private equity, publicly traded and non-profit organizations. She holds a bachelor’s degree in organizational leadership from Middle Tennessee State University and a Master of Science in industrial/organizational psychology from Austin Peay State University, plus SHRM-CP and PHR certifications. Vera and her husband have three grown daughters, and they enjoy spending time with family.

John Kilchenstein

Senior Director, Business Development

John Kilchenstein

Senior Director, Business Development

As Senior Director for Business Development, John and his team are responsible for introducing Naylor’s communication solutions to trade and professional associations. John was hired by Naylor in 2006 and has held several positions including publisher, group publisher and business development director. He was promoted to senior director in January 2015. During his nine-year tenure at Naylor, John’s top priority has been to help associations increase member value and engagement as well as drive non-dues revenue. John has 21 years of Business Development experience and is a graduate of Towson University with a BS in Business. He resides in Bel Air, MD with his wife and 3 kids. In his free time, he enjoys trips to the beach, coaching little league baseball and snowmobiling.